The not-doctor avoids Zhao’s powerful strike by contorting its body in a disturbing, fluid manner. And though the dwarf’s mechanical arm manages to hit the creature it fails to find purchase on its body or even the bloody doctor’s clothes.
A guttural sound akin to an animal’s growl seeps out from between the not-doctor’s clenched teeth. She jerks the door open and propels herself into the darkened room beyond. The stench of rot and decay bursts through the open door.
The creature is making to climb atop a pile of discarded animal carcasses up to a chute in the ceiling.
Damage Dealt: 6 Nonlethal
Zhao tries to catch the strange contorting creature on the backswing as it flees.
Her hands are gripping the weapon strangely though, and now that she thinks about it she's not sure why she picked it up at all.
She does feel better with it in her hands though, and watching that, whatever it was disappear into the darkness was most disconcerting. Not wanting to blind herself by following, she prepares herself for further attack.
Without letting up scanning the darkness for enemies, she speaks to her healer behind her.
Bless you friend, that was sorely needed. Who are you?
With it clear that the creature is fleeing, Merius will let out a sigh. "You've found gear? Perhaps its best we let it flee and arm ourselves." Merius tries to recall his name, but fails. [b]"Whatever that was must have hit my head rather hard putting me in the cell. I can't even recall that right now. Thankfully, I was able to heal you, those wounds seemed dire."
Maria takes a moment to gather up her gear and load her musket, then she backs into a corner with her firearm pointed generally at the strangers.
"You all were chasing me in my dream... If it was a dream. What do you want with me? Why did you bring me here?"
her voice quavers a bit as she attempts to stand taller (taller than her usual three feet) and demands of everyone in general as she stamps one of her little feet
"I demand you release me immediately. Take me back to... to wherever I was"
She falls quiet for a moment before saying quietly in a much less certain tone, a hint of tears in her voice
"Why cant I remember where I was?"
She begins to quietly cry and shake, her musket wavering in the air as she points it at the other three in the room.
The dwarf is busy grumbling to himself while reloading his arm, when he notices what the goblin is doing. "What the... is that a firearm?"
He slowly steps toward the goblin, hands out in front of him in what he hopes is a calming gesture. "Now, I don't know where you found that, but those things are really dangerous. Let's just set it down before anyone gets hurt, aye? I'm guessing we're all in the same predicament here."
Merius tries to speak calmly to the riled up goblin. "We don't know what was happening either. You just darted off, so we thought you might have some idea of where you were going. If we all had the same... vision? Something has definitely happened to us together. Even if you don't trust us, you at least want us to help get past the creature we just fought, right? So let's stick together for now, and we can sort out the details as our memories return... if that happens."
Zhao's heart goes out to the goblin when she starts crying, but she's kept at bay by the "fire arm" pointed at her, presumably some sort of firework launcher. She nods along with the samsaran and the dwarf as they appeal to her.
"Yes, none of us seem to remember who we are, the same thing has been done to us all. It may be that we are all allies, we need to find out what happened to us"
She lets the end of the nodachi rest on the floor and reaches out a hand to the goblin.
"I won't hurt you. I will help you if I can, I swear it. Will you work with me to get out of here and fix whatever has happened to us? Will all of you?"
She then indicates the pile of detritus from which she pulled the sword.
"That pile is full of stuff, and when I had only a second to choose, I grabbed this sword. It seems much too big for me, but I seem to know how to use it. Maybe there's clues to our identities in there? We should go through it and arm ourselves if we can, that thing is still out there"
Her eyes turn to the darkness where the creature fled.
"For now call me nodachi, it's as good a name as any"
Marias eyes grow wide as she keys in on what Merius is saying. She seems to forget about the weapon she is holding and her fingers nervously twitch and move across the weapon... uncomfortably close to the trigger.
"Do... do you think that creature could come back?"
Maria looks at Zhao she says quietly "I dont think I have a name, but I must right?... Everyone has a name"
She slowly seems to realize she is still holding her weapon and lowers it half way towards the floor so it is not fully pointing at anyone but could be raised into position in an instant.
Quietly she asks the rest "Do any of you know where we are?"
The samsaran nods to Nodachi, "Good idea to pick some kind of name, Nodachi. Even if we don't know, it's good have something to call each other. Call me Preacher, I guess." He offers the name to the group, unsure of what else to offer.
"As for where we are? I have no clue at all." Preacher starts to think over what he knows as he makes his way to the stash, then muses aloud, "There aren't any windows, and the creature went up, so I imagine we're in some kind of basement."
The dwarf flexes his strange prosthetic. "Ironhand."
He steps over to the rubbish pile and starts digging through the scraps. "Aye, we're definitely underground. Sticking together is likely the best plan. We'll need to watch each other's backs in case the 'Good Doctor' decides to drop in." He pauses in his rummaging to point at the goblin. "And if no one's going to try and take that gun away from the goblin, it'll need to stay where I can see it."
Maria immediately brings her gun back up as the weird armless dwarf mentions taking her firearm away from her. Her lips curl back from her pointed teeth as she snarls much more fiercely than before
"This is MY musket, I built it and NO ONE is taking it from me. Keep your weird, ugly, smelly, metal dwarf arm off my musket"
Tensions rekindle as Ironhand suggests taking the goblin's firearm. Though memories are lost, long-time hatred between the two peoples' refuses to be forgotten.
As the group discusses their next course of action a thumping can be heard from the chute in the next room. The noise appears to be moving further up.
Maria's eyes immediately shift to down the hallway.
"Did you hear that? Do you think that thing is coming back? What if there are more of them?"
The dwarf stops digging to stare at the goblin in incredulous shock. "You? You made... BWAHAHA!!" He collapses in a fit of uproarious, derisive laughter. "A GOBLIN... built a... HA!"
Recovering, he goes back to searching for anything remotely familiar in the pile. "BAH! I'm sure we'll eventually remember whatever poor sap you stole it from. Just don't come whining to me when you end up blowing your own head off." He looks up sharply at the noise. "That's probably our 'friend'. Let's get moving before it finds us more 'friends'."
Merius chastises the bickering bunch, "There are conflicts older than yours, and there are concerns more immediate. We are presently allies, so act like it. Focus on the task at hand before we all get torn to shreds again." He then huffs off towards the pile to see if he can identify any of his belongings.
Nodachi joins Ironhand and Preacher at the refuse pile and begins searching through the items looking for anything that seems familiar or fits. She spares a look at the arguing pair but the preacher seems to have it under control.
She looks for the scabbard for the nodachi first, and tries to find a way to tie it to her so it can be drawn easily, finding the correct placement comes naturally to her.
As the group digs through the collection of discarded gear they are all surprised to find that they each are instinctively drawn to specific items. Ironhand collects a fine set of weaponsmithing tools. Nodachi pulls the naginata from the pile. Maria is drawn to a tome with cryptic formulae written inside, attached is a satchel with various ingredients. Only Preacher feels as though something has eluded him. Though he finds a mace I'm the pile, he feels as though there is something better suited for him somewhere else.
When nodachi sees the odd little book, "Tears of Jade" she has a surprising reaction; a pang of shame. She quickly stuffs it into the backpack she's claimed, along with the wooden symbol in the shape of a crescent moon.
She sheathes her nodachi and draws the other very large weapon from the pile, a 6 foot staff with a 2 foot long blade at the end. Making sure her weapons and armour are secure she looks around for any exits other than the chute.
Several scorched humanoid bones amid the ashes inside the furnace, easily from a half-dozen bodies.
The vents leading up and out of the furnace are particularly wide, so much so that a Small creature could easily fit inside, while a Medium creature could fit by squeezing.
Merius digs through the stuff, he finds the lack of a Holy Symbol and Longbow concerning. He knows from where he draws his power, but... how could these not be here? Were they stashed somewhere else for some reason? That seemed unlikely, but then what would this mean?
Merius methodically puts on his gear, but he's more quiet and less composed than he was before.
While the samsaran digs through the discarded, bloody scraps of clothing his hand brushes against something hard and smooth. From the pile of refuse he pulls a finely crafted viol. Though the bow is missing, the instrument itself is undamaged.
Having found her gear, Maria shrinks away from the dwarf and searches around the room for any exit that doesnt require going in the same direction as the horrible creature.
Maria goes over to Nodachi, who she is a little less afraid of, and tugs on her sleeve
"Um... I think I could maybe fit up that tube in the furnace. Maybe there is a way we could go around and avoid any other scary creatures? Do you want to give me a boost and I can look around?"
Nodachi smiles warmly at Maria.
"Of course, but be careful, we don't know what might be up there. We'll be right behind you as soon as you give us a shout, and we'll be quiet down here unless you give us the all clear"
She peers dubiously at the vents and ponders whether her naginita will fit through it, but nevertheless stands by and gives Maria a push, then waits patiently
"I will just peek up and come back. If it leads anywhere someone a little bigger can go up first."
With that Maria takes a deep breath, visibly steadies herself, and with Nodachi's help, she attempts to climb up the small vent.
Ironhand rolls his eyes at the antics of his companions. He turns his attention to getting into a suit of heavy leather armor that seems to fit him perfectly. “Won’t catch me climbing up some filthy old flue. We ought to just block it up and move out through the door like civilized folk.”
He glances over at Preacher, who has dug an old instrument out of the refuse.
It takes little effort for you to crawl through the air vent. The vents twist and turn and often lead to collapsed sections. However, it only takes you a few minutes to reach a partially opened hatch. A faint glow emanates from outside of the hatch accompanied by scratching and chattering.
A cursory glance at the instrument leads you to believe it could be worth roughly 50 gp.
Maria backs up a little bit to ensure that she is out of sight of anything peering into the hatch and then takes a moment to listen to the sounds.
Maria peers through the opening of the hatch. After a few moments a strange creature skitters by. It has a mole-like nose, a rat's body and tail, and oddly simian limbs. The glowing light is coming from the creature's eyes. Behind it scurry two large rats.
The creature is a Zoog. Spiteful, nasty creatures with a taste for the flesh of sentient beings, zoogs lurk in the shadowy, moldering places of the world. Often mistaken merely for otherworldly animals, zoogs possess base intentions and vicious demeanors that set them apart from lowly beasts. Congregating in loose, tribal societies, these sinister creatures claim the depths of dark woodlands or moldy forests as their homes, favoring lands where the boundaries between worlds and planes grow thin and strange creatures—not unlike themselves—slip between reality’s cracks.
Though it's bite and claws are not very powerful it causes small amounts of bleeding.
The other two creatures are Dire Rats. This filthy rat is the size of a small dog. It has a coat of coarse fur, a long and scabby tail, and two glittering eyes. Their bite can cause Filth Fever.
Maria claps a hand over her mouth to silence a gasp as she sees the hideous creatures. Very, very quietly she begins to back even farther from the hatch and down the vent.
She scurries back down the vent and turns to the others wide eyed
"There is a way out through those vents... but there are three hideous rodenty things at the top. I have read about one of them, its called a zoog. Nasty creature with dangerous teeth and claws. I dont know what the other two were exactly but they looked like huge, filthy rats!"
"I think if we are going to go up there maybe someone a little bigger should go first... Those rats are nearly as big as I am and I really really dont want to be eaten"
They have increased sense beyond normal creatures and can sense if items have magical properties. While not very intelligent Zoogs can speak Aklo and can always communicate with animals.
"That was very brave, thank you. If needs be I will go first, but lets check on our other options. Ironhand, have you found anything?"
Nodachi will then approach the door that the creature left though, her naginita in both hands.
"Would one of you mind getting a light?"
She peers around that room looking for threats first, swiftly followed by exits. Any signs of the world outside would be welcome too
If she sees no present dangers, she will concentrate on her unfamiliar uncanny sense and detect evil in the room
Ironhand moves to the door with Nodachi.
“I can see in the dark, so I’ll take point.” he says, “Preacher, bring that lantern. Let’s get moving. When we get out of here, maybe we can find someone to buy that instrument you found, should fetch about fifty gold at least.”
Preacher still seems to be in shock, moving along quietly while the group advances. When he hears a comment about having a light, Preacher starts trying to cast light, briefly before remembering he still needs his holy symbol.
He then moves towards Nodachi to help illuminate ahead for the Tien woman and motions to the door.
A broad chute extends diagonally through one of this cellar’s half-crumbled stone walls. Beneath it lies heaped more than a dozen mutilated humanoid bodies and not,in fact, animal carcasses. Nearby,a flight of rickety, wooden steps climbs toward the high ceiling—an escape none of the room’s current occupants seem capable of employing as a wall has collapsed and blocked off the stairwell. The smell of rot and decay in the room is nearly overwhelming, and the buzz of flies hangs in the air.
With his keen, dwarven eyes Ironhand spots claw marks on the chute. They appear to be left behind by the creature as it fled. The chute should be easy enough to climb. It would simply require climbing atop the pile of corpses.
Nodachi stares aghast at the the scene of horror. Her face contorts in pain, and she has to push her words out between ragged breaths.
"These poor souls. How...? Who ... who would do this?"
She looks to be in shock, trying to make sense of it, trying to imagine how someone or something could have done this. She knows the key to compassion is empathy, but she can't imagine the mind that could have done this.
It's clear that the thought of climbing atop the bodies hasn't even occurred to her, so she just stands there dumbfounded, her grip on her naginita getting tighter and tighter.
Maria peeks around the corner and immediately her eyes grow wide at the sight.
"Ohgodohgodohgod are those ALL bodies?
Waving away flies as they buzz towards her, Maria moves closer to the pile.
still wide eyed she looks over the pile, she seems far more curious than disgusted at the sight.
"Who do you think they were?" after a brief pause and a slight sniff "You know, I thought dead people would be grosser. These really arent much worse than some of the midden piles I have dug through"
Peering up at the chute, Maria says "I think if I put my left foot on that leg there, and my right foot on whats left of that head, I might be able to climb up what is left of that big one and get to the chute. Do you think the scary doctor thing is gone by now?"
Preacher speaks to the worried goblin in a comforting tone."We can't stay in this basement forever either way. We'll need to get up there one way or another. You're the only one that can check and still move if there's any danger. I'm sorry to ask this of you, when I know I have no right."
"It's okay, I want out of this awful place as much as anyone! I just want to go home..... Although I guess I dont really know where home is anymore"
For a moment Maria gets teary eyed, but with a grimace she blinks the wetness away and takes a breath to steel herself.
Maria takes a moment to look around the pile of rotting corpses. Seeing what she is looking for, she darts forward and snags a thin leather belt off one of the mangled bodies and takes a moment to use the belt to tie up her skirt and keep it out of goo range.
Once everything is arranged correctly, she gingerly steps forward trying to step on the most solid and least juicy looking body bits. She climbs her way to the top of the pile and grabs onto the chute.
With all the strength she can muster, Maria begins to climb up the chute, she climbs quietly, stopping to listen every few feet and doing her best not to make a sound.
Nodachi startles out of her horrific reverie when she sees her new allies working together.
Pull yourself together, you can avenge these victims, but first you have to live
Muttering a prayer and apology under her breath, she tries to help Maria up the bodies as best as she's able, holding her arm out or stabilizing the pile as required, she then prepares to follow.
The bodies move and slip across each other as the goblin begins her disturbing climb. Hands and arms seem to reach for her as she ascends to the chute. An illusion created by the disturbance of the corpses.
The climb up the chute proves to be far easier. Claw marks, and gouges from various items create a fairly rough surface. Maria creeps up the chute and finds a closed hatch at the top. She presses an ear to the hatch and does not hear any sounds coming from the other side.
Looking at the closed hatch, Maria takes a few moments to wipe any remaining body goo off of her hands onto her skirt. She cringes as she looks at the gory stains.
"Those are never going to come out"
an instinctual thought crosses her mind
He is going to be so Mad! Maybe I can hide them before he finds out and I wont get in as much trouble
Even as she begins to reach for the buttons on the back of her skirt to take it off, Maria realizes she has no idea who HE is or why anyone would care about a dirty goblin.
Better to have a dirty dress and hands that wont slip.
Still slightly confused by the strength of that feeling and instinct, Maria quietly pulls her musket off of her back and loads the chamber. She points it at the hatch and, with a quick push, tries to throw the hatch open, ready to blast anything on the other side!
Ironhand waits at the bottom, trying to get a look up the shaft while coming into contact with as little of the grisly pile as possible.
In a flurry of motion Maria throws open the hatch and aims the business end of her firearm into...an empty room. It appears to be a large closet. Through the darkness she is able to see that nothing stirs in the room above.
Maria turns and is about to turn and climb back down the shaft when she remembers the pile of gooey bodies that await her at the bottom. Rather than descending she sticks her head back through the hatch and hollers down the chute
"All clear up here. I think its a closet. No sign of the doctor thing"
Then she backs into a corner opposite the door and points her musket at the entrance ready to blast anything that comes through.
Nodachi sheathes her weapons (which in the case of the naginita means strapping it to her back) and attempts the climb herself.
Stepping on the corpses to free herself is a waking nightmare, but she repeats a mantra in her head to keep herself calm
"I am the voice for those who go unheard, I am the eyes for those who cannot understand the truths of others who are not like them, I am the guide for mortal minds and souls, there is no shame in madness"
She does not recall where she heard it, but it brings her peace. Especially when she realises it's getting darker and darker
"Could you bring that lantern a bit closer?"
At the top she scrabbles up and draws a torch, fumbling around with flint and steel in the dark to get it lit
Ironhand is about to climb the pile of bodies when he gets an idea. He looks at his metal hand thoughtfully. "I wonder..."
He steps onto the pile just far enough to see the edge of the hatch above, then takes aim with his hand. With a THUNK and rattling of chain, his hand flies up past Nodachi, to attempt to grab onto the rim of the hatch.
"HA! Up we go!" the dwarf cheers, and begins reeling himself up the pipe.
Surprising even himself, Ironhand ascends the chute via his mechanical arm.
With the last of the group having ascended the chute, they find themselves crammed into a closet of sorts. A strange, yellow fog creeps a few inches under the singular door.
Merius felt trepidation seeing the smoke coming in from under the door. He reached for his club, unsure of what else was at his disposal.
"Be ready, we may have to fight... that thing."
Looking panicked at the sickly fog, Nodachi sweeps the torch across the walls of the closet looking for another way out
"We have no way out but through. Hold your breaths if you can"
with that Nodachi opens the door as quickly as she can and steps into the room beyond, looking for the quickest way through